Membrane switches are commonly used in calculators and portable communication products. These products are typically low profile and rarely utilize slide switches except for turning on and off the product. Slide switches usually fail to provide a seal from the outside environment. Furthermore, slide switches on portable products rarely provide multifunctional capability. Thus, a need exists for a slide switch that could be utilized in a low profile shaped portable product, and yet still provides a seal to the outside environment.
Keypads are typically only axially actuated. When a keypad is used as a function key, the function maybe indicated by a display. Accounting for the function or functions activated by keypad depressions would be difficult without a visual display. A slide switch, on the other hand, provides a visual display of the function being used (i.e., on or off) by the location slide switch. Thus, a low profile slide switch for activating keypads would be desirable.